Wednesday, 30 June 2010

On one side it is a black and white string block and on the other is a kaleidoscope block. I can’t decide which side I like better! The materials used were black and white assorted prints from my stash and the lime green and black print is from the kiwi collection and the black and white print fabrics are Michael Miller & Jennifer Paganelli prints. It is quilted using cotton batting with straight line quilting (my favorite) and the black binding sets off the quilt and is machine stitched to the front and hand stitched to the back.

This is only my second little quilt. It is made using fabric from my stash and Kona snow. I saw this pattern for the half square triangle quilt and thought it look interesting. It was a lot more dificult to line up the triangles than I thought and my piecing is not perfect, but the over all effect is still beautiful. I call this quilt "A Jewel of Summer" because of the jewel tone fabrics and it was made in the summer :).

Saturday, 26 June 2010

Flowers in my Garden19x19"This is a two sided wall hanging and is called "Flowers in my Garden".

The "Retro Pinks" side (above and detail below) is raw edged machine applique hand stitched on top with embroidery floss to "rough up" the flowers and flower beds. It represents when everything is in full bloom.

The "Dreaming of Flowers Emerging" side (bottom, and second from bottom) is a mini Irish Chain machine sewn together then hand quilted with quilting thread. The yo-yo flowers were hand stitched onto the background flower beds. This side represents the quietness that exists just before everything starts to burst forth from the ground.

Both sides are quilted to the cotton batting but not to each other. The fabrics are all cotton and taken from my fat quarter collection.

Big Foot - Framed14.75x19.75"This is a quilt-within-a-quilt. The inner quilt is an original design from my "Big Foot" journal quilt series, measuring 8" x 10" and features thread stitching, FME and a three-dimensional stalk of blossoms. The full size quilt measures 14 3/4" x 19 3/4" with a frame created of 4 layers of fabric with cut-aways.

untitledunder 15" squareThis mini is made from civil war reproduction fabric in a pattern called Chimney Sweep. The mini measures less than 15 inch square, the 9 blocks measure about 3.25 inches and the points are still there! It's quilted very simple following the sashing. It has traditional binding (machined to the front and hand stitched to the back)

We've less than a week to go now until the deadline and I know some of you are still working hard (and yes, some have emailed photos I haven't yet put up - I plan to do that tomorrow) and thought a few of you might appreciate an extra day or two, so I am extending the deadline for photos until Monday, 5th July, 9pm GMT. I know that weekend will be a bank holiday weekend for those in the US (and I assume you will have Monday off, as the 4th is a Sunday) so you might be able to get a little more sewing in!

I have offered to help at a fun in the park with games and water pistols with my daughters' Guides unit on that Monday evening - that will finish at 9pm, and we live literally around the corner from the park, so after that I will come home, upload any remaining photos and officially close the swap. Once I do that, I'll post instructions about what happens next.

So, if you still want in on this swap and haven't yet sent photos of a piece (or two) - you have two weekends (and a week!) to work on your quilt - I hope that will be enough for some of you to be able to join in!

Flutter of Time18x18"Using 100% cotton from Flutterby by Tula Pink for Moda and Grunge by Basic Grey for Moda. Block used is hourglass aka quarter square triangle. Thread used is 100% cotton 50 wt Aurifil thread. Binding is placed on the front by machine then hand stitched to the back with a 2" hanging sleeve. 100% cotton batting Warm and Natural.

Flutterby Butterfly15x15"The quilt is made from hand dyed fabric. The technique is Stained Glass applique--the black bias tape is applied by machine. There is hand and machine embroidery on it and the background is machine quilted. (The edges of the quilt are actually straight - not curving in the centre as they appear - that was probably caused by the way it was hung for photographing!)

Hi everyone - I have just emailed (I hope) everyone who has expressed an interest but who hasn't yet sent me their photos to remind them of the looming deadline (sooner than we think - yikes!).

I have now uploaded all the photos I have been sent, with one exception, where I am waiting to receive a detail or closeup shot to go with the full view shot, so if you think you have sent me your photos and you don't see them among the 15 on the blog so far, please email me straight away.

The rest of you, get sewing!! Seriously, there are some great quilts up already - I'm sure you don't want to miss your chance to give one a new home...

"I would rather fly my kite"17x23"My quilt has a mixture of machine quilting, Applique, embroidery, button embellishment. Its binding is hand stitched to the back. The fabrics are mostly new, but the lemon with blue flowers is left over from my first grandchilds cradle frill. He is now nearly 14.

Machine pieced cotton fabrics in an original pattern inspired by a Frank Lloyd Wright window design. The deep chocolate quilt back is pieced with rectangles of the same fabrics used on the front. The piece is machine quilted in a meandering interlocking squares design reminiscent of mid-century modern design, and a lighter thread is used on the back so that the quilting becomes part of the design of the back. Batting is 100% cotton Warm and Natural. The binding is the same deep chocolate fabric as the sashing and back, and is both machine and hand sewn. A hanging sleeve can be added upon request, in the same color as the backing.